Conrad National Coffee Day
Sat Sep 29, 7:00 AM - Sat Sep 29, 4:00 PM

National Coffee Day (September 29th ) there is such a thing as a free cup of joe. So why not repay the freebie favor by regaling your barista with any one of these fascinating coffee facts. 1. COFFEE WAS ORIGINALLY CHEWED. Sipping may be your preferred method of java consumption, but coffee has not always been a liquid treat. According to a number of historians, the first African tribes to consume coffee did so by grinding the berries together, adding in some animal fat, and rolling these caffeinated treats into tiny edible energy balls. 2. DRINKING DECAF FUELS THE SODA INDUSTRY. After coffee beans are decaffeinated, several coffee manufacturers sell the caffeine to soda and pharmaceutical companies. 3. INSTANT COFFEE HAS BEEN AROUND FOR NEARLY 250 YEARS. Instant coffee has been around for a while, making its first appearance in England in 1771. But it would take another 139 years for the first mass-produced instant coffee to be introduced (and patented) in the U.S. in 1910. 4. THE AVERAGE AMERICAN SPENDS MORE THAN $1000 ON COFFEE EACH YEAR. You’d think that spending an average of $1092 on coffee each year would be enough to make America the world’s most caffeinated nation. You would be wrong. 5. FINLAND IS THE WORLD’S COFFEE CAPITAL. Though Finland does not produce any beans of its own, its citizens drink a lot of the brown stuff—the most of any country in the world. 6. BEETHOVEN WAS A BARISTA’S WORST NIGHTMARE. Beethoven enjoyed a cup of coffee, and was extremely particular about its preparation; he insisted that each cup he consumed be made with exactly 60 beans. 7. COFFEE BEANS SENT BRAZILIAN ATHLETES TO THE OLYMPICS. In 1932, Brazil couldn't afford to send its athletes to the Olympics in Los Angeles. So they loaded their ship with coffee and sold it along the way. 8. THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO BAN THE BEVERAGE ENTIRELY. As recently as the 18th century, governments were trying to eradicate coffee. Among the many reasons for outlawing the beverage were its tendency to stimulate “radical thinking.” In 1746 Sweden took things to an extreme when it banned both coffee and coffee paraphernalia (i.e. cups and saucers). 9. 17TH-CENTURY WOMEN THOUGHT IT WAS TURNING THEIR MEN INTO “USELESS CORPSES.” In 167